Bonner Named House Ethics Chairman

Speaker-designate John Boehner announced Wednesday that Rep. Jo Bonner (R-Ala.) will be chairman of the Ethics Committee in the 112th Congress.

“Jo Bonner is widely respected on both sides of the aisle, and has a deep appreciation for the importance of both ethics education and enforcement in the House. I am confident that as chairman, he will work with the other members of the Ethics Committee to ensure there is accountability at all times in the People’s House,” the Ohio Republican said in a statement.

Bonner has been the panel’s ranking member for the past two years, and also served on the special subcommittee that investigated Rep. Charlie Rangel. The New York Democrat was convicted of multiple counts of violating House rules and was censured in the last weeks of the session.

Republicans, who will take control of the House in the next Congress, are also formally changing the name of the committee to the Ethics Committee. It was called the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct in the 111th Congress.

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March 13, 2015

Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call

Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., right, hugs Harold Schaitberger, General President of the International Association of Fire Fighters, after the Congressman spoke at the IAFF's Legislative Conference General Session at the Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill, March 9, 2015. The day featured addresses by members of Congress and Vice President Joe Biden.